Our Great High Priest
Open Your Bible
Hebrews 4:14-16, Hebrews 5:1-10, Psalm 110:1-7, Matthew 4:1-11
BY Vina Mogg
As a little girl growing up in the Catholic church, I observed with wonder the ceremony when the priest prepared the sacraments, then lifted the chalice above the arms of his embroidered robe towards the heavens. The rhythm of this routine brought comfort and awe at the same time. During those moments, my young heart began to realize the meaning of the word holy.
A decade later, my teenage heart beat wildly in my chest, urging me to come forward amidst the sounds of praise music, beckoning me to come closer to God, the One who seemed so holy and far away. That day I knelt before a different altar, not in ceremony but in surrender.
The early years of sensing the holiness of God prepared me to kneel in wonder of the reality that I could draw near to God Himself. In this passage, we see how God made way for us to draw near to Him in confidence.
Let us approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in time of need. ––Hebrews 4:16
It is difficult to wrap our heads around the truth that the God of the universe wants us to draw near. With confidence. To receive mercy. And grace.
Grace means to receive something undeserved. That undeserved gift is that Jesus Christ is the source of eternal salvation.
Jesus is the source, who walked with humanity on earth. He was holy, yet approachable (Hebrews 4:15).
He endured every temptation (Matthew 4:1–11). He suffered for us (Hebrews 5:8). He sympathizes with our every weakness (Hebrews 4:15).
The wonder of wonders is not only did He save us; He desires to draw near to us. The holy one that endured every suffering and pain because of His love for us longs for us to draw close. To approach Him. The God of the universe. He invites us not only to draw near, but to hold fast to our confession that He saved us.
The word krateo in Greek means holding fast, not letting go. The way we would grab on to the hand of a loved one, a grasp that is steadfast and unyielding to any thought of letting go. A grasp that holds on even tighter when difficulties urge us to release. A grasp that keeps us knuckle to knuckle in the grip of His love.
50 thoughts on "Our Great High Priest"
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I love this community of women so much. The study of Leviticus was life-changing and I’m really enjoying the study of Hebrews.
One of the things that I love so much about this community is that we are a group of praying women. No request is too small to make. I have two really serious, scary requests for y’all to pray over.
The first one is for you to pray for one of my students. I teach high school art and one of my freshmen boys is having to go to court this coming Monday. His parents went through a really ugly divorce two years ago. One of the reasons for the divorce was that the dad was molesting this child. He admitted it to the district attorney and the mom thought that would be all, but now they are having a trial and he’s going to have to go testify. My heart just aches for him. He is a precious young man and I hate that he is having to go through this. Please pray for the presence of God over this young man and that He will allow me to speak words of love and affirmation to him.
The second prayer request is for the wife of one of our former youth. (My husband is youth pastor at our church.) She had surgery to have a cyst removed. The surgeon was able to remove that cyst, but while operating he discovered more growths. Since then, they found out that the growths are cancerous. They are still trying to determine where the cancer originated. She’s having tests next week to help determine that. They have a toddler. Please pray for this family. We are all devastated for them.
Thank you for being women willing to go before the throne of God. I will keep you posted. Have a blessed weekend. -
JM- sorry I hit the wrong button-
3 Your people will offer themselves freely
on the day of your power,
in holy garments;
from the womb of the morning,
the dew of your youth will be yours. – Psalms 110:3
I thought this might be a day of power upon our earthly death and passing into eternal rest in His presence! What a nice image! -
JM- sorry I hit the wrong button-
3 Your people will offer themselves freely
on the day of your power,
in holy garments;
from the womb of the morning,
the dew of your youth will be yours. – Psalms 110:3 -
JM- sorry I hit the wrong button-
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JM – as I read these passages, I related this-
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Susie H– Hebrews 4:14 “let us hold fast to our confession” — if you look it up in the Greek Lexicon you find the word for “hold fast” to be krateo in Greek. I use the Blue Letter Bible app to look up the Hebrew (OT) or Greek (NT) translation root word. It is a big help!
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Oh ladies, such a great High Priest we serve. He lived by faith in His Father’s will. He had to experience that which His people would experience so that He might be able to minister as their High Priest. He is able to sympathize with us when we are suffering. No matter what trials we face, Jesus Christ is able to understand our needs and help us. And when we have gone through difficulties we are better able to understand the needs of others, and become better able to encourage them. And what a visual “knuckle to knuckle in the grip of His love”.
This journey thru Steve’s brain cancer certainly keeps me drawing closer to Jesus. And He is so good. He gives me His manna from heaven, all that I need, minute by minute, day by day. Thank you for your prayers…even when I don’t always mention that I need them, it is a daily need.
JM – praying for you in the loss of your mother and your son
I keep a list of prayer needs and go over them so many times. I feel as if I know all of you. What a wonderful family of sisters here.
Tina, thank you for your Krateo hugs from across the pond.
Hugs to all and a blessed weekend. ❤️ -
I feel so blessed and eternally grateful to have a God who longs for my salvation!
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